I was just wondering what the community's current thoughts were about having multiple stars within one galactic map. Just an idea I've been toying with because it might make for more balanced starts in competitive play / has potential for use in GW. Additionally, since binary stars (as well as stars existing close to each other) exist in real life, why should they not be included in PA? Additionally, in my eyes it seems as though the overall strategic element at the system level of the game is lacking / non-existent. By putting in multiple stars in a given system this could add in some strategic complexity into how you are going to break down an opponent if, for example, they started on a planet orbiting a star neighboring yours. By splitting up spawns in this manner, in addition to how multi-planet spawns currently work, the time for initial contact to occur between players is increased which gives much more of a "civilization vs. civilization" where MULTIPLE planets per player can be in intense combat simultaneously rather than the current "singular army vs. singular army" mentality that currently exists where there is really one one or two points of combat that is occurring at any one time. Sorry for my ramblings. Haven't slept too much today (night?) and just figured I'd get this idea out to the community for their musings on the pros / cons of including Binary Star Systems As a disclaimer: I do not know whether or not this is possible with the current engine or if Uber has come out and said either yay or nay against it.
I don't know if it's possible with the game engine, but it's been been discussed a bunch, although it's been a while. Multiple solar systems is a no, but multiple stars is a possibility I believe. I think it'd kinda just be two stars in the center of the solar system though. At any rate. The community as a whole tends to support it. I think it would be pretty cool! However, it's not really a very high priority. I'd rather have other stuff like a ladder or the unit cannon. Sounds like a great post 1.0 feature though!
Yah thats sort of the feeling I had. Being able to have two stars in a system separated by space so that you could get fancy with planet orbits (due to the two gravity wells) would be a interesting tidbit from a map design perspective. Post 1.0 I'll take though. I think the changes would only really affect a small portion of players as opposed to other ideas (like the unit cannon) which everyone would be happy to use.
I'd like it but it'd also be a bit difficult, having to render twice the lighting because of two sources as apposed to one. Though you'd think it wouldn't be too difficult as I'd imagine you can simply make an invisible object in the center of the solar system with very high mass to hold all the planets in orbit, with two suns rotating around it through an animation. All speculation though.
that's not what I mean, I'm talking about his habit of stating things as in or out as factual without sources and often erroneously.
In fact binary stars systems act pretty much like single star ones : Stars and planets will turn around a imaginary point. I think this should be quiete easy to mod.
Multiple solar systems in a single game is a no. It's been stated quite a few times. Often erroneously? I challenge you on that one. I have been very rarely been proven to provide incorrect info.
The circular orbits themselves would be easy to create. However, say you wanted to make a planet have a figure eight type orbit and cross between the two suns for artistic reasons or what have you. All the sudden that becomes a lot more complicated because placing a high mass object at the center of the solar system, while allowing a binary star system, would not allow any of the cool map design ideas to be implemented because the way the game's engine currently seems to run wouldn't be able to handle it. (I do not claim to know really much at all about the game engine but from the way you generate planets it seems as though everything's gravity well is based upon their mass. Thus, you theoretically shouldn't be able to set up two massive gravity wells within one solar system because game engine physics. Once again - I do not know if this is fact but its just some stuff I kinda pulled from observing how the game works)
